Triti is the element that holds the key to creating unlimited energy?

The Z machine at Sandia National Laboratory in New Mexico is one of the most powerful radiation sources in the world. In the near future, it will generate 500 times more energy than current capacity.

Researchers have revealed that they are introducing tritium, a radioactive isotope of hydrogen , to fuel the Z machine. With a 50/50 combination ratio between tritium and deuterium, they say that The machine will be able to emit 80 times the amount of neutrons and turn it into fuel, blending into the giant electric field of the machine.

The Z machine has long been used to provide important information for simulated computers used to test the availability of US nuclear arsenal without true explosive weapons.

This is one of the most powerful radiation sources in the world.

Astrophysicists use it to reconstruct the conditions above the stars and the core of the planet.

Some researchers hope that the pressure generated by electricity and magnetism could produce a nuclear reaction to produce fuel.

With the addition of triti, the Z machine was ready to push the neutron limit much higher, emitting more than 80 times the number of neutrons.

And so, it will produce more energy than just using deuteri, or heavy hydrogen, a stable isotope of hydrogen that is common in oceans. The amount of energy that can be generated will be 500 times the current capacity.

"This is an unprecedented energy-generating method, we don't have fire yet, but we are preparing on the grill," said Mike Cuneo, senior manager of Sandia's Science and Technology Pulse Group.

But researchers are still in the early days of adding tritium, which will take about three years before approaching the 50/50 test.

With the addition of triti, the Z was ready to push the neutron limit much higher.

So far, the team conducted a test in July to test solid hardware and measuring devices, and after three weeks, they conducted the first test using triti but only a fraction of the 1% fuel.

Only two other Department of Energy agencies support the use of triti, the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and the University of Rochester Laser Energy Laboratory.

Tritium is likely to become a threat to the environment, and researchers are taking serious precautions with it.

The tritium molecule is extremely small, so researchers are working to make sure the radioactive material cannot go into millions of gallons of water used to isolate the electrical pulse of the machine.

"We will have to crawl before we can go and run," Cuneo said.

"We will gradually increase the amount of tritium in subsequent tests. Triti is like sand on the beach, it can go into everything."

"So far, we can't let it go anywhere. Laser facilities don't have these tanks."

They also said that triti could cling to metal walls in the central area of ​​the Z machine, posing a potential radioactive hazard where technicians go in and out every day.

Tritium is likely to become a threat to the environment.

But there was no dispersion of triti.

"There is a high level of safety coordination of radiation protection and storage facilities to ensure that triti is not dispersed," said Brent Jones, head of the facility.

"Sandia-California shipping group, with decades of experience dealing with triti, they have developed a method of transporting, storing and living with this material."

Researchers are working to determine if this isotope can be safely used in tests without isolation.

There are nearly 100 Sandia employees contributing to this effort, with funding from the Director of Sandia Research and Development Laboratory and other researchers from General Atomics, Los Alamos National Laboratory, University of New Mexico and Utah State University.